Huddlestone suspension reduced

Pearce helps to get midfielder's ban cut to two games

By Chris Burton   Last updated: 22nd December 2008

Huddlestone suspension reduced

Huddlestone: Ban reduced

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England U21 midfielder Tom Huddlestone has seen his three-match international suspension cut to two games.

The decision, taken by Uefa following a disciplinary appeal in Nyon on Monday, effectively helps to prolong the Tottenham man's time with the Young Lions.

With the U21 European Championships to be held in Sweden next summer, Huddlestone would have been unavailable to coach Stuart Pearce until the semi-final stage of the competition.

With the national boss making it clear that he would be unwilling to include any player in his squad that would be of no use to him during the early stages of the tournament, the 21-year-old would have been one of those left behind.

Pearce, though, was desperate to have Huddlestone, a man with considerable Premier League experience, in contention for a place in his side.

Therefore, he travelled to Switzerland to help fight the initial suspension.

He claimed that his young charge, who was handed a straight red following a mistimed tackle in a qualifying play-off against Wales in October, was not the sort of character to make malicious challenges.

He highlighted that Huddlestone's only two previous red cards in his career had come for dissent and an off-the-ball incident.

His evidence was taken on board by the Uefa panel adjudicating over the case and they subsequently decided to be more lenient.